That Printer of Udell's by Harold Bell WrightMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
My Synopsis
That Printer of Udell's follows the path of young Dick Falkner, whose mother is dead and whose father is a drunk. From a very young age, he makes his own way in the world, until he finds himself looking for work among the "kind" Christian people of Boyd City.
Unfortunately, their hypocrisy is all too clear to him; they go to church and nod their heads as the pastor preaches goodwill to all men, but their lives reflect that of self-centered socialites. Disgusted, he applies for work from a man who, like himself, sees the falsity of the church people.
In time, the citizens of Boyd City, with young Dick as their catalyst, slowly begin changing that first impression that he had formed of them. More and more, the young people start reaching out with ideas to change things for the better in their city, and before too long many of the older folks are engaged in helping their fellow man as well.
Before you know it, Dick Falkner is a fairly influential man in the church community, but he is not without troubles of his own, which make his character all the deeper and more admirable.
My Thoughts
I began reading this book in fits and starts, but before I knew it I was drawn into a book that grabbed me in a way that many of today's contemporary works will not do. Many of those works employ sensation as their means of drawing you on and you want to read until the next shock, but in this book, I believe I was drawn on because I really began to know, love, and care about the well-written characters. Their trials and triumphs seemed to be conveyed in a way that appealed to me.
Harold Bell Wright, a American pastor during the first half of the 20th century, experienced much of what his main character does. This book was his first attempt in the writing field, and I have to say that he did a good job. I loved the fairly simple style in which the story was told.
"As he stood there, the audience was forgotten. The past, with all its mistakes and suffering, its doubt and sin,
came before him for an instant, then vanished, and his heart leaped for joy, because he knew that it was gone
forever. And the future, made beautiful by the presence of Christ and the conviction that he was right with
God, stretched away as a path leading ever upward, until it was lost in the glories of the life to come, while he
heard, as in a dream, the words of his confessed Master, “Follow: thou me."
It's a story of faith, but more than that, it's a story that cries out against the apathy that even churches of today are often dwelling in. This book was not written for those who are lost and need to be saved, but for those who are saved and need to help the lost.
All in all, I loved this book, and have added it to my favorites shelf. If anyone were to ask me, I would recommend it in a heartbeat. It's one of those books for me, that although the people may appear to be slightly more perfect than what each of us think is possible, it gives me something to strive for. That is the kind of book that edifies me the most.
Before I go, I would like to point you to the Wikipedia page on That Printer of Udell's. I especially want to point out the last paragraph about Ronald Reagan. It just provides an interesting tidbit of information.
Finally, I would like to ask for your help. I'm not that great at writing book reviews and could use all the help I can get! What can I add to make a book review more helpful or informative? What kind of questions would you like to see answered in a book review? Leave your thoughts on this particular book, use the rating widget below, and answer these questions in the comments below!
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